Dating device



Aug. 4, 1959 W. F. LIDKE DATING DEVICE Filed Aug. 1, 1956 INVENTOR. /lf/iam F Z/a ke United States Patent:

DATING DEVICE William F. Lidke, Kansas City, Mo. Application August 1, 1956, Serial No. 601,456

2 Claims. (Cl. 101-29) This invention relates to a dating device particularly adapted for marking batteries and the like with the month and year of purchase. Ordinarily devices of th s character have a single die for any one year, so that 1t is necessary to purchase a new dating device at the end of each year. Usually the devices are completely serviceable when they become obsolete, but they are of no further use. This results in added expense and is wasteful.

Therefore, the principal object of the present invention is to provide a dater which is of simple construction and capable of use over a period of years.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a dater with relatively movable parts wherein one part has the dies representing a plurality of years, and another part the dies for each month, so that the die for any given month may be matched with the die for any one of the years; to provide a structure whereby the matched dies may be placed over a part of the battery and tapped with a hammer or like device to effect marking of the battery part with numerals or symbols designating the month and year in which the battery is purchased; and to provide a dating device that is of simple and inexpensive construction to be sold at relatively low cost or which may be dispensed as an advertising item.

In accomplishing these and other objects of the invention, I have provided improved structure, the preferred form of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. l is a face view of a dating device constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a cross sectionon the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the face side opposite to that illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of parts of the dating device shown in disassembled spaced relation to better illustrate the construction.

Referring more in detail to the drawing:

1 designates a dating device constructed in accordance with the present invention and which is adapted to be used in applying data to batteries and similar devices sold on guaranty where it is desirable to know the date when the devices were purchased. The device 1 includes relatively movable parts or members 2 and 3. The member 2 preferably constitutes the main part of the dater, while the member 3 is rotatably mounted thereon.

The member 2 comprises an outer ring or rim 4 connected with a central disk or hub portion 5 by radial spokes 6. The central disk portion 5 and spokes 6 have substantially flat faces 7 and 8 flush with the face 9 of the ring portion 4. The opposite face 10 of the rim portion 4 has an inset annular portion 11 in plane with faces 12 of the spokes 6 and the face 13 of the disk portion 5 to provide a recess 14 having substantially a depth corresponding to the thickness of the member 3.

The member 3 also comprises a ring portion 15 having an outer diameter corresponding to the diameter of the recess 14 so that the outer periphery 16 thereof slides in Patented Aug. 4-, 1959 the disk portion 5 of the member 2. The inner face 20 of the member 3 is substantially flat over the entire area thereof, so that when the member 3 is placed in the recess 14 of the member 2, the face 20 contacts the portion 11 and faces 12 and 13 of the spokes 6 and disk portion 5 of the member 2 and the main portion of the outer face side 21 of the member 3 is substantially in plane with the face 10.

To facilitate turning of one member relatively to the other, the inner and outer circumferences of the portion 4 of the member 2 are in the form of a circular series of sinusoidal curves or scallops 22 and 23 and the inner circumference of the ring portion 15 of the member 3 has' similar scallops 24, as best shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The scallops provide the desired bearing between the ring portions and sufiicient areas to accommodate pads 25 and 26 that project from the face sides of the ring portions 4 and 15, respectively. Located on the opposite side of the ring portion 4 of the member 2, in radial registry with the pads 25 and centered in registry with the face 7 are bosses 27. The pads 25 and 26 have dies 28 and 29 on the faces thereof. For example, the member 2 may have thirteen pads 25, one of which is a blank and the other bear respectively number dies 28 from 1 to 12, indicating the numbers of the months in a year. The dies on the pad 26 of the member 3 may fonn the numerals 0 to 9 for designating the last numeral of 5a year, for example, the die 6 would represent the year 19 6.

The parts 2 and 3 are retained in assembly by a spindle 30 that projects through an axial opening 31 in the disk portion 19 of the member 3. The spindle is bored and tapped as indicated at 32 to receive the threaded shank 33 of a screw which has a head 34 of sufficient diameter to overlap the disk portion 19 of the member 3, as best shown in Fig. 2. The spindle, however, is preferably of greater length than the thickness of the hub portion 19', so as to accommodate a washer 35 thereon and under the head 34 whereby a better bearing is provided between the head 34 of the screw and the member 3 when the head of the screw is tightened against the end of the spindle 30. The bosses 27 may be numbered in accordance with the dies 28 on the front faces of the pads 25 as indicated by the numeral 37.

In using the device, the inner member is turned so that the die thereon representing the last numeral in the year, for example 6 representing the year 1956, is registered with the die 28 for the month in which the battery was sold. Assuming that the battery was sold in July, the die for the numeral 6 will be turned to register with the die for the numeral 7 on the member 2. The side of the device bearing the dies is then placed so that the registered dies are in contact with a part of the battery to be marked, for example, the terminal post or one of the lead bars connecting the battery cells, after which a light tap of a hammer is applied to the boss 27 which registers with the die 6 as indicated by the numeral 6 at 37. The impact of the hammer or other percussion device is sufficient to cause the dies to indent the material to leave a permanent mark showing the month and year in which the battery was purchased.

It is obvious that the parts 2 and 3 are generally in the form of concentric ring members and that the recess 14 of the part 2 provides an annular shoulder forming a bearing support for the part 3. Also, the bearing support provides for transmitting the force of the hammer or percussion device to the part 2 which bears thereagainst.

From the foregoing it is obvious that I have provided 3 a dating device for batteries and the like which is of simple and inexpensive construction and which may be used over a period of years.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: 1. A datingdevice including concentric ring members, one having a portion backing the other, dies on the'ring members adapted to be selectively registerable upon turning one of the ring members relative to the other, means for retaining the ring members in concentric relation, said backing ring member having scallops aligning with the dies on inner and outer peripheries thereof and said other ring member having scallops aligning with the dies thereon for registering with the scallops of the backing ring member to align the dies when turning one of the ring members with respect to the other.

2. A dating device including concentric ring members having face sides provided with pads carrying dies with the dies on one ring member in plane with the dies of the other ring member, means for retaining the ring members in concentric relation, and one of said ring members having an annular bearing portion lapping the other ring member on the side opposite said dies for transmitting impacts uniformly to selected dies of the ring members when the device is used, said-annular'bearing portion having scallops and the said other member having similar scallops adapted to be registered therewith for aligning the dies when one ring member is turned relatively to the other.

References Cited in the'file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

